Captive portals are the marketing hack you need to excel in WiFi marketing. Did you know that 74% of customers want WiFi while dining at a restaurant? That’s a sky-high statistic. For security reasons, you should be offering guest WiFi separate from your business WiFi. Captive portal software gives you marketing benefits as well. This is a low-cost and effective solution and marketing hack for business owners.
In this guide, we’ll introduce you to the captive portal solution. Whether you run a coffee shop or grocery store, captive portals can aid your marketing campaign. You’ll learn a thorough definition, the benefits, and the steps to set up a captive portal — everything you need to know. Ready? Let’s make a start.
What Is Captive Portal Software?
Captive portal software creates pop up pages that customers have to interact with before it grants them full internet access.Captive portal solutions are easy to understand once you wrap your head around this basic concept. A captive portal is like a sieve. When customers reach the captive portal login page, they pass through but leave valuable marketing details behind.
This software is a way of collecting customer data while using WiFi as a bargaining chip. Customers get WiFi, and businesses get marketing details. It’s a win-win.
When customers click to join your guest WiFi network, it opens up an automatic login page - consisting of a form. To proceed and successfully join your WiFi network, guests must input their details and agree to any terms and conditions. Once they enter the required details, they press the continue button and join.
All of these details funnel from the back end to a database on your software of choice. This means you build a log of customers you can contact as part of marketing campaigns. How brilliant is that? This software automates all of the process, so there’s little to no input on your part after. It is low-cost and highly passive.
Furthermore, you get a colorful dashboard of marketing contacts to show for it. It’s a great way to build your network security and invest in future marketing campaigns, all while keeping customers happy. It is incredible what the power of customer mobile devices and a bit of software can bring.
We will speak more about the setup process later. It is straightforward, though. You download the portal software and sync it with your guest’s WiFi. If you’ve yet to set guest WiFi up, it’s time to do so. You can then move on to software downloads after.
Benefits of WiFi Captive Portal Open Source
Restaurants and coffee shops alike will debate over the best captive portal solution. The simple answer is you can find brilliant WiFi captive portal open-source options to meet all budgets and requirements. Expect to pay between $20 and $100 monthly for captive portals. This includes automation and a dashboard with easy syncing to other marketing software.
A more critical question is what the benefits of captive portals are. Rather than focusing on the best captive portal, focus on the benefits. This will help you understand what you are looking for on your hunt for the best software.
They boost marketing prospects.
The first benefit is obvious. Captive portals boost your business’ marketing prospects. The fact that the software collects customer details means you have a ready-made marketing list. You can then dip into this at any time. A brilliant customer database is a must when running a successful business. You’ll have the means to reinvest in business, drive more brand awareness, and drive more leads.
They improve network security.
Another massive benefit of captive portals is how they improve network security. Having that extra layer of security reduces your risk of cyber attacks and bots. You can even add CAPTCHA authentication to get network users to prove they are human.
Another element of this network security is the fact you get to enforce terms and conditions of network use. You can block specific sites and dictate how guests use your WiFi. You have more control over the security of your network.
It is low-cost, passive, and deductible.
For the most part, business marketing is tax deductible. And captive portals are no different. However, another huge benefit is how low-cost and passive this marketing process is.
Can You Find a Free Captive Portal?
Are you low on a marketing budget? You may be wondering if you can find a free captive portal. And the answer is absolutely. While you can expect to pay around $20-100 monthly for more advanced packages, you can still find free options.
These are a few of the free captive portals on the market:
- Zeroshell
- M0n0wall
- Chillispot
- Pfsense
This software offers a free package version so that you can download and start today at no risk.
It’s also worth mentioning that many software offer trials and demos if you are more concerned about risk than budget. These software offer trials and demos, meaning you can get a taster with zero commitment. These are better for those wanting advanced software but are wary of initial commitment and upfront spending.
- Spotipo
- Beambox
- IronWiFi
- WiFiGenie
As you can see, there is plenty of room for free experiences. Whether you opt for free software, a free trial, or a demo, you’ll find captive portals to fit your budget. Captive portal marketing is one of the most budget-friendly and flexible strategies you can invest in.
Steps for Setting Up the Best Captive Portal
Now you know all about the benefits, choosing software for different budgets, and a definition, let’s get practical. In this section, we’ll look at setting up captive portals. It can be overwhelming looking at downloading and syncing software to your network. Even just looking at all the software options can induce a procrastination spiral.
Luckily, some simple steps exist for setting up the best captive portal possible. We’ll break these down for you, splitting them into two main sections — research and set up.
1. Research Software Choices and Review Your Requirements
This section is all about choice and research — picking the best software. At this stage, you’ll already have guest WiFi ready and waiting to sync with portal software. You’ll just be looking at software options. These are your next steps:
- Pick a software that suits your budget. If you are unsure, opt for free software or a software offering a trial.
- Draft any terms and conditions you will add and research the benefits of captive portals. This way, you can decide how to make the most of this strategy. Will you ask for social media engagement? Permission for email marketing? Or for customers to leave a review? All this research will help you shape your campaign in the setup stage.
2. Set-Up Your Captive Portal
This section is practical. You are ready to go and make a start.
- Download your captive portal of choice.
- Get everything up-to-date and have access to your network access point on the web.
- Enable a captive portal on your network settings.
- Customize your portal settings and the front end of the captive portal.
- Test your captive portal on a mobile device.
What Businesses Need Captive WiFi
Which businesses need captive WiFi? In short, anyone who owns a physical business location. If people come into your business, they expect that WiFi will be available for guest use. So get ahead of the game and keep customers happy while boosting your prospects. This is especially true for hospitality businesses, where customers wait long periods.
Are you ready to harness the power of captive portal software? Here at Beambox, we help you to do exactly that. Start your Beambox free trial now. We can set up the best strategy today; you’ll collect valuable data and impress customers in no time.
Get Started With Free WiFi Marketing
Beambox helps businesses like yours grow with data capture, marketing automation and reputation management.
Sign up for 30 days free
